Cylinder head remover



1941- E. M. PFAUSER ETAL 2,229,255

CYLINDER HEAD REMOVER Filed Jan. 19, 1939 INVENTOR5- M ATTORNEY.

Patented Jan. 21, 1941 UNITED STATES PATENT OFFiCE CYLINDER HEAD REMOVER.

tion of Wisconsin Application January 19, 1939, Serial No. 251,720

2 Claims.

Our present invention relates generally to improvements in the art of dismantling machinery, and relates more particularly to improvements in the construction and operation of apparatus for efiecting removal of snug fitting motor parts such as the cylinder heads of internal combustion engines.

In general, an object of our invention is: to provide simple and effective equipment for expediting removal of machine parts such as the cylinder heads of internal combustion engines.

Automobile repair-men have heretofore frequently encountered considerable diificulty in attempting to effect removal of motor cylinder heads which had not been removed for extended periods of time. These cylinder heads are normally held in place by means of numerous snug fitting parallel studs, and are firmly clamped against leak-proof gaskets. The studs and heads usually become rusted or corroded, and the gaskets stick tenaciously to the head and cylinder, thus making it extremely difficult to withdraw these heads from the parallel fixed studs. Because of the use of numerous retaining studs of various lengths, which are spaced differently in different sizes and styles of engines, and also because the threading in the spark plug openings afiords practically the only means of applying the enormous pull required to eiiect initial withdrawal of stub-born cylinder heads, it has heretofore been impossible to readily remove these heads under adverse conditions Without damaging or marring either the cylinders or the clamping studs secured thereto. It required great skill and care and a large assortment of tools, with the prior methods, in order to efiect removal of so-called frozen cylinder heads from their normal moorings, and it also consumed an excessive amount of time and in 40 many cases the work could not be done at all by the ordinary garage mechanic, without causing damage to the cylinder heads.

It is therefore a more specific object of our present invention to provide improved instrumentalities for effecting quick and convenient removal of even the most stubborn cylinder heads, from their cylinder blocks and retaining studs.

Another specific object of our invention is to provide new and useful cylinder head removing equipment having relatively few and simple parts, and which can be effectively employed for removal of various types of heads having different numbers of clamping studs and different sizes of spark plug openings.

A further specific object of the invention is to provide an improved cylinder head remover which is especially adapted for operation by means of a standard power jack or ram, and which may be applied and manipulated by any mechanic.

Still another specific object of the present invention is to provide improved apparatus for facilitating removal of cylinder heads or the like with the aid of the threaded spark plug openings and retaining studs, and which will insure withdrawal of the heads parallel to the stud axes.-

An additional specific object of our invention is to provide universally applicable cylinder head removing equipment, which is durable in construction and which may be manufactured and sold at moderate cost.

These and other specific objects and advantages of the present invention will be apparent from the following detailed description.

A clear conception of an embodiment of our invention, and of the mode of applying and of utilizing the improved apparatus for the removal of cylinder heads, may be had by referring to the drawing accompanying and. forming part of this specification, wherein like reference characters designate the same or similar parts in the several views.

Fig. 1 is a top view of a cylinder head and of our improved head removing apparatus, showing the hydraulic actuating ram in section;

Fig. 2 is a longitudinal vertical section through the head and apparatus of Fig. 1, taken along the line 2-2;

Fig. 3 is a top view of the lower stud engaging member or plate removed from the actuating ram;

Fig. 4 is a side View of the lower plate; and

Fig. 5 is an enlarged central vertical section through one of the universal spark plug fit- 40 tings.

While We have shown and described the invention as being applied to a particular type of cylinder head having a specific number of attaching studs, and as being operable by means of a hydraulic ram, it is not our intention to thereby unnecessarily restrict the scope or utility of the improvement.

Referring to the drawing, the ordinary internal combustion engine for propelling automobiles or the like, comprises in general a multiple cylinder block I having a one-piece cylinder head 8 provided with internally threaded spark plug openings 9, the head 8 normally being clampedto the block 1 by means of a series of studs I0 and nuts coacting with the studs, see Fig. 2. The head 8 is usually provided with a cooling jacket II and coacts with the cylinder block I through a leak-proof gasket I2, and the studs ID are disposed parallel to each other and snugly fit bored holes I3 penetrating the head 8.

Our improved apparatus for facilitating removal of such cylinder heads 8, utilizes the threaded spark plug openings 9 and the upper ends of several of the fixed studs II] to effect breaking of the seal afforded by the gasket I2 and the corrosion between the studs and stud openings in the cylinder head. This improved apparatus is shown assembled in Figs. 1 and 2, and comprises a lower stud engaging member or plate I4 having an internally threaded central boss I5 and alined opposite side slots I6; an upper cross-member or beam I! provided with an internally threaded central hub I8 and two sets of alined slots I9, 29 on opposite sides of the hub; tension elements or bolts 2I having upper heads 22 adapted to coact with the beam II and being provided with lower threaded ends 23; and spark plug adapters 24 having internally threaded sockets 25 cooperable with the threaded lower ends 26 which are cooperable with the spark plug openings 9.

The lower plate I4 has a plane lower stud engaging face, and besides being provided with the boss I5 and slots I 6, this plate may be provided with a cut-out 2! for clearance purposes when applied to certain types of standard cylinder heads, and with one or more adjustable stud engaging screws 28 adapted to coact with short studs also used in certain types of cylinder assemblages. The threaded boss I5 is formed for coaction with one of the relatively movable elements 29 of a standard power applying jack or ram, and the threaded hub I8 of the uper beam I1 is formed for similar and simultaneous coaction with the other jack element 38, so that relative movement of the elements 29, 30 will produce similar relative movement of the plate I4 and beam I I. Both the plate I4 and the beam I! are reenforced by ribbing as shown, and when these parts have been properly assembled, the slots I6 of the lower plate should be in approximate vertical alinement with the inner slots I9 of the upper beam.

The bolts 2| shown in Figs. 1 and 2 are standard machine bolts having their lower ends 23 provided with special threading adapted to fit one size of spark plug opening 9, and when our equip-ment is being used to remove a head 8 having that particular size of opening 9, the adapters 24 need not be used as the bolts 2I may then be screwed directly into the threaded openings 9. In the assemblage shown in Fig. 1 and 2, the spark plug openings 9 are too large to coact directly with the threaded ends 23, and the lower end 26 of each adapter 24 is therefore formed to properly coact with these larger openings 9. In cases where the assemblage is to be used on cylinder heads 8 having still smaller and larger spark plug openings 9, special bolts 3| and adapters 94 such as shown enlarged in Fig. 5, may be provided. The special bolts 3I have threading 32 which corresponds to the threading on the ends 23 of the bolts 2I, and the extreme lower end 33 of each bolt 3| is of reduced diameter and is threaded to fit the smallest spark plug openings 9. The bolt end 33 is freely insertible within the unthreaded socket 35 of the adapter 34, and the lower end 36 of each adapter 34 is threaded to fit a spark plug opening 9 of the size shown in Fig. 2. The medial enlarged portion of each adapter 34 is provided with larger threading 31 adapted to fit the largest size spark plug openings 9, so that the special bolt 3| and adapter 34 may be used in conjunction with four different sizes of spark plug openings 9.

When utilizing our improved apparatus to effect release of a firmly confined cylinder head 8 such as shown in Fig. 2, the upper clamping nuts should first be removed from the studs I9. The equipment should then be applied to the jack or ram elements 29, 30 and associated with the cylinder head 8 in the manner shown in Figs. 1 and 2, that is, with the lower face of the plate member I4 engaging the upper extremities of several of the studs I 8, and with the bolts 2I connecting the upper beam member I! with the cylinder head in alinement with the spark plug openings 9. By virtue of the provision of the slots I6, I9, 20, the bolts 2| may obviously be positioned in alinement with the openings 9 even if these openings are spaced apart different distances, and this adjustment is clearly indicated at the left of Fig. 1. After the equipment has been thus properly applied to a cylinder and cylinder head, the jack elements 29, 30 may be caused to move apart. The plate member I4 will then exert downward pressure against the fixed studs I9, and the beam member I! will subject the bolts 2I to tension and will thus exert an upward pull upon the head 8. By applying sufl'icient force to the jack, the seal afforded by the gasket I2 and the retarding effect produced by corrosion between the studs and stud openings in the cylinder head, will soon be broken, and the head 8 will be moved upwardly along the studs It. When the head 8 has been moved away from the cylinder block I to a slight extent, it is a relatively easy matter to thereafter lift the head from the studs I0, and complete removal of the head 8 may therefore be effected after the seal has been broken, by merely lifting the jack and the releasing apparatus together with the head 8, manually off of the studs in an obvious manner. Due to the fact that the bolts 2| are located on opposite sides of the center line of the jack, and are also disposed in true alinement with the spark plug openings 9, and also due to the fact that the plate member I4 is of sufficient size to coact with studs I8 on opposite sides of the jack, the withdrawal of the head 8 may be accurately effected in a direction parallel to the stud axes. Possible tilting and damaging of the studs I0 is thus positively avoided, and initial release of the head is made possible with minimum effort.

In case the application of downward pressure against the studs I8 is not sufficient to prevent tilting of the member I4, theset-screw 28 may be manipulated to bring the same into coaction either with a short stud or with some other portion of the cylinder I, thereby providing an additional contact point against which releasing pressure may be applied. In the event that the spark plug openings 9 are not of proper size to receive the threaded ends 26 of the adapters 24, the adapters may be removed and the bolt ends may then be applied directly to the spark plug openings. The special bolt SI and adapter 34 of Fig. 5 will obviously permit application of the bolt ends to any standard size of spark plug opening, and the adapters are furnished only in order to permit greater flexibility in use. The hydraulic ram shown in the drawing may 0b- Viously be replaced by any other type of jack, although it has beenfound that great power is inder heads.

available with the hydraulic jack and the apparatus has actually been utilized to remove cylinder heads which could not be loosened with any other available equipment.

From the foregoing detailed description it will be apparent that our invention provides an improved cylinder head release assemblage which is extremely simple, durable and compact in construction and which may be readily applied to standard engine cylinders and manipulated to release even the most stubbornly retained cyl- The equipment can be quickly applied to and removed from a cylinder head and the various adjustments provided will permit attachment of the assemblage to engines of different types and shapes. The power is effectively distributed so as to insure withdrawal of the heads parallel to the retaining stud axes, and the equipment shown in the drawing is applicable to any standard type of automobile motor now on the market. The apparatus may obviously be manufactured and sold at moderate cost and can also be manipulated by any ordinary mechanic.

It should be understood that it is not desired to limit this invention to the exact details of construction or to the precise mode of use of the apparatus herein shown and described, for various modifications within the scope of the claims may occur to persons skilled in the art.

We claim:

1. A cylinder head remover, comprising, a pair of elongated beam members each having a central socket and a plane surface disposed perpendicular to the common axis of said sockets, a jack having elements relatively movabl along said axis and attached to said members at said sockets, and a plurality of tension rods suspended from one of said members and extending past the other, all of said tension rods having headed ends coacting with the plane surface of the suspension member and passing through adjusting slots in said member, and the rods nearest said axis passing through alined slots in said other member and beyond the plane surface thereof while the rods farthest from said axis are located beyond the extreme ends of said other member.

2. A cylinder head remover, comprising, upper andlower elongated beam members each having a central screw threaded socket and a plane surface disposed perpendicular to the common axis of said sockets, a jack having inner and outer elements relatively movable along said axis and attached respectively to the threaded sockets of said lower and upper members, and a plurality of bolts suspended from said upper member and depending beyond the lower member, all of said bolts having heads coacting with the plane surface of said upper member and passing through adjust-ing slots therein, and the bolts nearest said axis passing through alined slots in said lower member while the bolts farthest from said axis are located beyond the extreme ends of said lower member.

EDWARD M. PFAUSER. EDWARD H. SCHULTZ. 

